Page 8 - Biobehavioral Resilence to Stress

Foreword

Military service involves exposure to multiple sources of chronic, acute, and
potentially traumatic stress, especially during deployment and combat. Such
stress can affect not only short- and long-term health but also human per-

formance and even survival. Military experience over the last two decades
has focused significant attention on previously underemphasized health

threats ranging from stress disorders to traumatic brain injury, a grouping of

medical conditions that science may show is a continuum. This volume sum-
marizes what recent research has determined about stress and brain injury,

identifies questions still to be answered, and suggests priorities for scientifi c
inquiry.
The desired outcome of increased understanding of stress and injuries

affecting cognitive function is an enhanced ability to promote and build

resilience in military personnel. This outcome will benefit the individual, the
unit, the mission, and the national defense. Science related to stress resilience

is militarily important to the extent that it offers practical applications in areas
such as human performance optimization, health protection and readiness,

operational risk management, and reduction of first-term attrition. It is ethi-
cally and militarily essential to promote psychological preparedness among
active duty members and reservists whose service may involve stressors such
as prolonged deployments in extreme environments, exposure to insurgent
warfare, sleep deprivation, and general physiological stress. Research that
supports a preventive strategy and tools or methods to improve personal

resilience will reduce the human, organizational, and financial costs associ-
ated with military psychiatric casualties, mental health intervention, and the
need for long-term care.
Key objectives of this volume are to advance understanding about fac-

tors that affect resilience in performance-critical military operations and to
motivate progress toward what may be possible. We intend this volume to
inform the design and focus of future research leading to enhanced stress
protection and resilience among those who serve in the national defense,

not only in the military but also in fields such as emergency management,
law enforcement, and transportation. Science can help us to understand the
psychosocial and biological basis of stress resilience, to recognize stress vul-
nerability among troops, and to identify and train “resilient” individuals
who can withstand and perform in psychologically demanding occupations
and settings.
vii

1/31/2008 12:28:33 PM
CRC_71777_Fm.indd vii 1/31/2008 12:28:33 PM
CRC_71777_Fm.indd vii